NASA Rolls Out Lunar Tires at Monster Jams

Few things rev the engines of Monster Jam fans more than tires—including lunar tires. NASA’s Glenn Research Center recently gained traction with amplified audiences at Monster Jams in Milwaukee, Jan. 20-21, and in Cleveland, Feb. 16-17. During pit parties, NASA’s outreach team rolled out its replica lunar rover tire to show visitors the work NASA is doing on space tires.

The exhibit also included an inflatable Mars rover, First Woman comic backdrop, and distribution of solar eclipse glasses and eclipse path maps.   

Additionally, Grave Digger driver Krysten Anderson and El Toro Loco driver Armando Castro visited NASA Glenn in Cleveland to see how future tires for the Moon and Mars are designed and tested.  

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Kelly M. Matter

NASA Expanding Lunar Exploration with Upgraded SLS Mega Rocket Design

By: Martin Burkey

As NASA prepares for its first crewed Artemis missions, the agency is making preparations to build, test, and assemble the next evolution of its SLS (Space Launch System) rocket. The larger and power powerful version of SLS, known as Block 1B, can send a crew and large pieces of hardware to the Moon in a single launch and is set to debut for the Artemis IV mission.

“From the beginning, NASA’s Space Launch System was designed to evolve into more powerful crew and cargo configurations to provide a flexible platform as we seek to explore more of our solar system,” said John Honeycutt, SLS Program manager. “Each of the evolutionary changes made to the SLS engines, boosters, and upper stage of the SLS rocket are built on the successes of the Block 1 design that flew first with Artemis I in November 2022 and will, again, for the first crewed missions for Artemis II and III.”

Early manufacturing is already underway at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans, while preparations for the green run test series for its upgraded upper stage are in progress at nearby Stennis Space Center in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.

New Upgrades for Bolder Missions

While using the same basic core stage and solid rocket booster design, and related components as the Block 1, Block 1B features two big evolutionary changes that will make NASA’s workhorse rocket even more capable for future missions to the Moon and beyond. A more powerful second stage and an adapter for large cargos will expand the possibilities for future Artemis missions.

“The Space Launch System Block 1B rocket will be the primary transportation for astronauts to the Moon for years to come,” said James Burnum, deputy manager of the NASA Block 1B Development Office. “We are building on the SLS Block 1 design, testing, and flight experience to develop safe, reliable transportation that will send bigger and heavier hardware to the Moon in a single launch than existing rockets.”

The in-space stage used to send the first three Artemis missions to the Moon, called the interim cryogenic propulsion stage (ICPS), uses a single engine and will be replaced by a larger, more powerful four-engine stage called the exploration upper stage (EUS). A different battery is among the many changes that will allow EUS to support the first eight hours of the mission following launch compared to the current ICPS two hours. All new hardware and software will be designed and tested to meet the different performance and environmental requirements.

The other configuration change is a universal stage adapter that connects the rocket to the Orion spacecraft. It also offers more than 10,000 cubic feet (286 cubic meters) of space to carry large components, such as modules for NASA’s future Gateway outpost that will be in lunar orbit to support crew between surface missions and unique opportunities for science at the Moon.

Together, those upgrades will increase the payload capability for SLS from 59,000 pounds (27 metric tons) to approximately 84,000 pounds (38 metric tons). The four RL10 engines that will be used during the exploration upper stage green run test series at Stennis are complete, and work on the Artemis IV core stage is in progress at nearby Michoud.

More Opportunities

The evolved design also gives astronaut explorers more launch opportunities on a path to intercept the Moon. With four times the engines and almost four times the propellant and thrust of ICPS, the EUS also enables two daily launch opportunities compared to Block 1’s more limited lunar launch availability.

Among other capabilities, both astronauts and ground teams will be able to communicate with the in-space stage and safely control it while using Orion’s docking system to extract compenents destined for Gateway from the stage adapter.

NASA is working to land the first woman, first person of color, and its first international partner astronaut on the Moon under Artemis. SLS is part of NASA’s backbone for deep space exploration, along with Orion and the Gateway in orbit around the Moon and commercial human landing systems, next-generation spacesuits, and rovers on the lunar surface. SLS is the only rocket that can send Orion, astronauts, and supplies to the Moon in a single launch.

News Media Contact

Corinne Beckinger
Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, Ala.
256.544.0034
corinne.m.beckinger@nasa.gov

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Lee Mohon

Communications Services Project

Overview

NASA’s Communications Services Project, known as CSP, is pioneering a new era of space communications by partnering with industry to provide commercial space relay communications services for NASA missions near Earth. CSP’s goal is to validate and deliver these commercial communication services to the Near Space Network by 2030. To meet this goal, CSP provided $278.5 million in funding to six domestic partners to develop and demonstrate space relay communication capabilities.

CSP aims to deliver innovative capabilities to meet NASA mission needs, while simultaneously supporting the growing commercial space communications market in the United States. CSP intends for future commercial space relay communication services to also support other government agencies and commercial space flight companies, further bolstering the domestic space industry.

Capability Development and Demos

CSP’s Capability Development and Demonstration (CDD) sub-project is responsible for ensuring commercial space relay capabilities will be available to support NASA missions and ready for validation in 2028. The CDD sub-project also conducts insight into industry activities, primarily through partnership agreements such as the Funded Space Act Agreements (FSAAs) CSP established with six industry partners.

To contact the CSP Capability Development and Demonstrations team, email the Capability Development and Demonstration Sub-Project Manager, Dave Chelmins, dchelmins@nasa.gov.

Mission Support

CSP’s Mission Support (MS) sub-project supports NASA missions as they prepare to make the transition to commercial space relay communication services. The MS sub-project leads CSP’s Commercial Services User Group and conducts simulations to help mission better understand the benefits and impacts of transitioning to commercial communication services. In addition, the MS sub-project facilitates demonstrations between early-adopter NASA missions and commercial service providers.

To contact the CSP Mission Support team, email Mission Support Sub-Project Manager, Ryan Richards, ryan.m.richards@nasa.gov.

Service Infusion

CSP is developing a set of service requirements that commercial providers must meet before they can provide operational services to NASA missions. The CSP Service Infusion (SI) sub-project is responsible for developing, and coordinating, these service requirements with key stakeholders including the mission community, the Near Space Network, and NASA’s mission directorate leadership. The CSP SI sub-project is also responsible for validating commercial services and transitioning these services to the NSN for operational use.

To contact the CSP Service Infusion team, contact Service Infusion Sub-Project Manager, Jennifer Rock, jennifer.l.rock@nasa.gov.

Near Earth Operations Testbed

CSP’s Near Earth Operations Testbed (NEO-T) sub-project develops advanced hardware-in-the-loop emulation capabilities that allow NASA missions interact with commercial space relay communication services from the comfort of the laboratory. NEO-T will allow direct connections between mission hardware and actual commercial provider systems, and supports missions from planning through system integration phases, and beyond.

To contact the CSP Near Earth Operations Testbed team, email the NEO-Testbed Sub-Project Manager, Nang Pham, nang.t.pham@nasa.gov.

FSAA Partners

NASA’s Communications Services Project has six Funded Space Act Agreements (FSAA) with industry partners to develop and demonstrate commercial space relay communication services.

Inmarsat Government Inc.

Inmarsat Government will demonstrate a variety of space-based applications enabled by their established ELERA worldwide L-band network and ELERA satellites.

Kuiper Government Solutions LLC

Kuiper will deploy over 3,000 satellites in low-Earth orbit that link to small customer terminals on one end and a global network of hundreds of ground gateways on the other.

SES Government Solutions

SES will develop a real-time, high-availability connectivity solution enabled by their established geostationary and medium-Earth orbit satellite constellations.

Space Exploration Technologies

SpaceX plans to connect their established Starlink constellation and extensive ground system to user spacecraft through optical intersatellite links for customers in low-Earth orbit.

Telesat U.S. Services LLC

Telesat plans to leverage their Telesat Lightspeed network with optical intersatellite link technology to provide seamless end-to-end connectivity for low-Earth orbit missions.

Viasat Incorporated

Viasat’s Real-Time Space Relay service, enabled by the anticipated ViaSat-3 network, is designed to offer a persistent on-demand capability for low-Earth orbit operators.

Contact Us

CSP is managed by NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, Ohio, under the direction of NASA’s Space Communications and Navigation (SCaN) program. SCaN serves as the program office for all of NASA’s space communications activities, presently enabling the success of more than 100 NASA and non-NASA missions.

To contact NASA’s Communications Services Project, email the CSP Manager, Dr. Peter Schemmel, peter.j.schemmel@nasa.gov.

To contact the Space Communications and Navigation program, email scan@nasa.gov.

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Jermaine Walker

Tech Today: Suspended Solar Panels See the Light

In the 80 years since the shocking collapse of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge in Washington, engineers have designed suspended structures to minimize their universal weakness: resonance. If not designed to deal with oscillations caused by forces like wind, the frequency of these forces would cause tensions to build and inevitably break the structure.

When Jim Clair examined how to focus mirrors at a concentrated solar energy power plant, he thought about suspending the mirrors on cables but remembered the images of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge shaking itself apart. To determine how well these suspended solar panels would hold up to potentially destructive oscillations, Clair, and his company Skysun LLC in Cleveland, Ohio, sought the help of NASA’s Glenn Research Center in 2016 to verify his design was safe from dangerous resonance.

Trevor Jones, a dynamicist at Glenn, went to nearby Lorain County Community College to work with a prototype of the system. Jones induced vibrations in the cables with hammers and took measurements of the resulting oscillations. Based on this data, Jones designed a program that could accurately model the design’s tensile strength against wind-induced oscillations at any scale. With the dimensions plugged in, the program did the math and proved that Clair’s idea would work without shaking apart.

Today, Skysun builds various suspended solar energy generation systems, ranging from the hammock-like Skysun Solar Pollinator to full-sized solar pergolas that provide both electricity and shade.

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Andrew Wagner

NASA Astronauts Jasmin Moghbeli and Loral O’Hara Read “First Woman”

In this image from Jan. 12, 2024, NASA astronauts Jasmin Moghbeli (left) and Loral O’Hara pose with a copy of “First Woman”, NASA’s first graphic novel, inside the International Space Station’s cupola. The interactive graphic novel chronicles the adventures of fictional astronaut Callie Rodriguez, the first woman to explore the Moon. Through Callie’s journey, “First Woman” features real-life technologies developed by NASA to enable future missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. Moghbeli and O’Hara were interviewed by the graphic novel’s writers, and their experiences helped develop Callie’s character.

O’Hara, a former Girl Scout, launched to the space station on Sept. 15, 2023, for a six-month stay. She and her fellow Expedition 70 crew members study an array of microgravity phenomena to benefit humans living on and off the Earth. Moghbeli launched to the International Space Station as Commander of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 mission on Aug. 26, 2023. She returned to Earth with the rest of Crew-7 on March 12, 2024.

Download, read, and interact with issues 1 and 2 of “First Woman.”

Image Credit: NASA/Loral O’Hara

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Monika Luabeya